Smith wraps up his bravura lampoon of Los Angeles's ethnic and class stewpot in much the same way that it began—with a procession of singularly entertaining characters ripped from the fabric of multicultural urban life. MBQ
is ostensibly the story of Omario, a flat-broke but supremely confident self-proclaimed comic book genius. But Omario's quest to alert the planet to his genius (and get rich) serves as a vehicle to examine the crazy group of supporting characters. There's Dee, a brutal black drug dealer who admires Omario's uncompromising self-confidence; Omario's Korean buddy Brian, who works in a karaoke bar but aspires to rap his way to hip-hop stardom; and Aidan O'Malley, a star rookie cop secretly warped by street beatings suffered when he was a kid. Smith weaves together many interconnected stories in a final crescendo of hilarity, adrenaline-pumping violence and smokin' hot chicks. But his ruthlessly funny, weirdly affectionate portrait of L.A. is really a paean to the life of the serious, and usually poor, artist—you do what you gotta do to get your art done—even it means working the late shift at McBurger Queen. An early star of the original manga movement, Smith is a prodigious talent, and MBQ
is his introduction to the comic book world. (Oct.)
